• OPEC seeks Nigeria’s support amid volatility, dwindling funding
Federal Government, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and others stakeholders in Abuja, yesterday, kicked back against push by Western countries for adoption of cleaner energy and end to fossil fuel.
This came as independent operators in the upstream segment of the oil and gas industry insisted regulatory framework of the sector, especially Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and Nigerian Midstream Downstream Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), need urgent alignment.
The organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which also insisted at the ongoing Nigerian Oil and Gas (NOG) Energy Week Conference and Exhibition that the oil sector requires a funding of $12.1 trillion till 2024, said cooperation of the government of Nigeria is sacrosanct to surviving volatility of the global oil market.
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Gabriel Aduda, said the country would continue to leverage existing hydrocarbon resources to address its energy challenges, instead of abandoning key revenue sources.
Aduda said the conversation around energy transition must favour Africa, noting that while affordability and availability remained key, it would only be fair if Western countries are willing to set up their companies in Africa, instead of merely importing renewable energies.
“If the world is really serious about energy transition, we must be ready to fund the process and the entire value chain to reap the benefits,” he said.
NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, said available and unaffordable energy remained critical issues in Nigeria, due to a combination of hindrances that include pricing, lack of finance and elusive return on investment.
Disclosing that NNPCL is readying to go public, Kyari said the company is simply a state agent on Production Sharing Agreements (PSA).
“The PSAs are not on the balance sheet of NNPCL, but we make sure you do your work because when you do it, we are compensated with 40 per cent of your profit. So, it is important for us; it is business for us,” he said.
Kyari noted that the market is running short of gas and that upcoming projects may not find gas, unless new investors come into the market.
Chairman of Independent Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG), Abdularazaq Isa, while speaking at the event, said there is urgent need to address loopholes in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
Isa, who was represented by Layi Fatona, vice chairman, ND Western Nigeria Limited, called for the establishment of a strong governance framework to guide implementation of the Act.
He also called for the establishment of midstream and downstream sectors that would add value and catalyse a rapidly industrialised Nigerian economy.
